Squishies
by iratepirate and Taipan Kiryu
Summary: G1. Skywarp finds it easy to turn Thundercracker and himself into humans just for interfacing purposes. Will they, not to mention their friendship, manage to survive in the human world when they set their eyes on the same female? Side-story to 'Fleshling'.
1. Chapter 1

_Hello and welcome to another of our fanfic writing experiences. If you have read any of our previous joint or solo fics and you think you know more or less how we function, please allow us to tell you that you're wrong._

_Why? Because for this fic we took a trip to the past. Yeah, just as you read it. We shed some years of maturity and good judgment – yeah, right – and became a couple of 16 year old teenage girls again._

_So if you're expecting a fic featuring high doses of depth and darkness, sorry to tell you that you won't find any of these things here. In other words, this story is currently being written by our hormones. Yeah, as simple as that._

_Still, that doesn't mean we will go completely crack. There are things we, and our hormones, respected when we were 16 years old, such as following a plotline and, the most important thing of all, characterization._

_Finally, but no less important, is the fact that this story was born from a request from the wonderful Valong. There is some amazing art based on our stories on Deviantart that she commissioned for us. We didn't have the words to thank her for her generosity, so we offered to turn those words into a story for her. She requested a chapter featuring Thundercracker and Skywarp in human form happening at the same time of our fic 'Fleshling', but when we started writing it we decided that a one-shot wouldn't be enough._

_So this is the result, a story that will have much, much more than only one chapter. But before we begin, we must point out that, although spawned from Fleshling, the two fics are completely stand-alone. Nothing that happens in this fic will influence what happens in Fleshling.  
_

_This one is for you, dear Valong, and for all those fangirls, teenagers or not, who can't separate hormones from Seekers._

* * *

**Squishies**

**Chapter 1**

"Frag!"

Thundercracker was very used to Skywarp's complaints; he had listened to them ever since they were cadets at the Iacon Military Academy, always centered on superficial things. It was very curious, though, how Skywarp had never complained about all the serious changes their lives had suffered since they had been dragged to a war that had brought everything opposite to courage and honor.

"Frag, slaggin' frag!"

Thundercracker turned around, slowly. He had a long habit of repressing anger, but this time it was proving to be quite a challenge not to pound Skywarp to death.

"What?" he spat, more than said.

"I stepped on something sharp… Frag, it hurts!" Skywarp complained, jumping on one foot as he held the other one with his two hands. "Do you see this? I'm losing vital fuel!"

There was, indeed, a small cut on the bottom of his wingmate's foot. Those jokes for bodies they had now were turning out to be even softer and more fragile than Thundercracker had thought at the beginning.

"It doesn't look that bad," he said. "Can you keep walking?"

"I guess so…"

"Then move. We need to find shelter soon. The night is falling and the temperature is not getting any warmer." Thundercracker shivered as he spoke. He could feel the slagging cold not only around, but within him.

Skywarp cursed again but Thundercracker paid no attention to him. He should be the one cursing, he should be the one punching Skywarp until he became a pile of pulp and then repeating the process on himself. How many times had he been dragged down by the aftereffects of his wingmate's stupidity? He should have kept a list… but not even all those problems together could compete with having been turned into a human – a human of all creatures! – with very little chance of returning to his body and lost in a terrestrial city-state that was as cold as it was foreign.

"Frag!" he heard behind him.

Thundercracker rolled his eyes. "What now? Did you step on something sharp again?"

"No… this time it was something slimy."

Thundercracker decided not to reply, or he would end up murdering Skywarp for real. The blasted black Seeker found it funny to include Thundercracker in all of his fragging pranks, but tricking him, his supposed best friend, into Soundwave's laboratory and having bathed them both with the experimental solution the Communications Officer and Scrapper were working on, was the sort of thing to do to an enemy, not to a friend. When a very shocked Thundercracker had found the voice to complain, Skywarp had only laughed and said that he had done it so they could both get laid.

"_Think about it, TC! Earth is full of femmes, there are like zillions of them! We frag them, we frag them again, and then we get back to normal."_

Thundercracker had not killed him in that moment only because they had heard noises outside the laboratory. Stealing an escape pod and flying to Portland to look for Starscream had been the most sensible, and urgent, course of action. They had been very lucky managing to pilot it in their tiny condition, although the landing had left the pod everything but operational.

Thundercracker shivered again and looked around, the grey edifications being left behind to give way to taller and more colorful buildings. Maybe they were leaving the industrial zone and were about to enter a residential area. That meant that they were likely to find humans… a disturbing thought. How would they find Starscream amongst all those humans?

"Mmm, TC…?"

Thundercracker turned around reluctantly.

"I'm sure this was bigger when we landed some minutes ago…" Skywarp said, holding in his hand the small limb that hung between his legs. "Do you think it's smaller?"

Thundercracker hadn't really paid attention to Skywarp's body. Their new structures were equally ugly to him, but he had studied humans enough to know that those parts had both the function of expelling residuals and reproducing the human kind. Of course he kept that piece of information to himself; the last thing he wanted was to give more ideas to Skywarp and his 'human interfacing' project.

They walked for about two breems more until they saw some lights and heard muffed music in the distance. Thundercracker's instinct told him that it would be best to stay away from there, but, as always, his wingmate had different, opposite intentions.

Skywarp peered around the corner into the street, practically bouncing with excitement as his eyes fell upon the group of females standing outside what appeared to be a nightclub.

"Frag, look at them TC," he said, unconsciously beginning to preen himself. "All squishy and round...and female..."

"And _human_," Thundercracker continued for him, rolling his eyes in disgust. "Look, can't you just focus on the important things for a change? Like finding Starscream and getting our real bodies back?"

The black and purple ex Seeker snorted, not looking away from his prey. "TC, this is important. How long has it been since you last had some action, huh? It's not so bad for me, I'm not picky, but you... You did hear me say that they're female, right?"

Thundercracker crossed his arms over his chest, tempted to leave his so-called friend with his gaggle of squishies and braving the human world on his own. "I'm not a sick fragger like you, Warp. Female or not, I'm not into bestiality."

Skywarp dragged his attention from the females to smirk playfully at his companion. "Maybe not now, but I'm betting you won't be able to resist it for long. And, as your best and only friend in this universe, I am going to make sure you don't miss this opportunity for a good overload, because once we get our real bodies back it's goodbye 'face life for you."

Was it desperation, or raw anger that was growing inside Thundercracker's flesh frame? He was very used to Skywarp's stupidity in all its manifestations, but the black Seeker was finding new ways to surprise him. Maybe it was his human brain not being as self-composed as his Cybertronian processor, but Thundercracker was getting _really _mad, _really _quickly.

"How can you be so shallow, not to mention stupid, Skywarp?" he said, his head feeling hotter by the minute. "We are stuck in an alien city, without any weapons to defend ourselves, and in bodies that we don't know frag about. We are facing a very dangerous situation and all you can think about is interfacing!"

Skywarp seemed to be taken aback momentarily, but the proximity of the elements of his lust made him disregard everything else.

"Are you sure your interface equipment wasn't removed along with your Cybertronian frame, TC?" he said, immediately returning his attention toward the group of females. "You know what? Suit yourself. If you don't want to get laid, fine with me. I'll take care of your share; just don't come to me later and whine that you want some, 'cause you won't get it!"

Without waiting for an answer, Skywarp turned around and left the shelter of darkness, advancing directly towards the group outside the nightclub. Thundercracker felt the instinctive impulse of going after him and stopping him from going into enemy territory, but he was too upset to care about simple rules of survival, even less about the safety of his idiotic wingmate, so he stayed where he was, divided between anxiety and curiosity.

The first thing he noticed was that something was definitely out of the ordinary. As much as he and Skywarp looked exactly like a pair of ordinary humans, something must have been wrong because as soon as Skywarp got into the light, all the humans turned to stare at him.

"Hello there, sexy ladies," he could hear his stupid wingmate saying as he ran a hand through the fibre on his head in what seemed a very human-like gesture. "I hope none of you have a radar 'coz I wanna get lost in your curves."

If it weren't for the fact that the humans had started shrieking with both laughter and possibly disgust before Skywarp had opened his mouth, Thundercracker was certain that horrific pick-up line would have done it. Honestly, he really didn't know how the idiot had managed to interface with almost every mech and femme he'd pursued.

But that didn't seem to matter now as the females began to back away, one of them throwing small items from her handbag at the still-advancing Skywarp.

"Fuck off, you freak," he heard one of the girls calling.

Thundercracker couldn't help feeling a small bit of sick satisfaction. Maybe that rejection would give Skywarp a lesson he had needed desperately for thousands of vorns. Seekers were beautiful – they were purposely built beautiful – but the metamorphosis into humans may have not been very gentle on the matter.

But good ole Skywarp… Stupid and vain as he was, he continued his pathetic flirting act. The results were diverse; some of the females were laughing, others looked shocked, there was a small group too that had fixed on Skywarp the most twisted of looks… One of them was pointing what appeared to be some sort or recording device at Skywarp.

That made Thundercracker frown. Had the experimental transformation water malfunctioned and turned them into anatomically incorrect humans? Would their cover be blown so soon?

Skywarp seemed to be thousands of mechano-miles away from his train of thought as he reached out and grasped one of the humans by the arm, one that belonged to the shocked group, because she began to scream immediately.

That's when Thundercracker realised that it was not a matter of anatomy. He and Skywarp were, indeed, different from that group of humans. There was a reason why Starscream had been so insistent in covering his human body when his disgrace had begun. Apparently, walking around in their ugly, squishy flesh without any sort of covering was unacceptable in the human world.

"Slaggit," Thundercraker swore under his breath as the woman in Skywarp's grip struggled to free herself.

"Let go of me, let go of me you pervert!" She screamed in near hysterics.

"No need to be shy, sweetspark, I'll treat you good," the humanized Seeker continued despite her resistance. "And you too, sexy," he added to one of her friends as she began to slap and pull on his arms.

Thundercracker was tempted to let the slagger suffer in his self-created mess, but his pit spawned conscience chose that moment to rear its ugly head once again. The cries of help intensified in both volume and desperation as he searched his dark hiding place for some sort of cover; if being accosted by Skywarp was enough to create a disaster, his naked arrival would turn it into a full-blown nightmare.

After a moment of hesitation, he decided the circular, metal lid of what he would later learn to be a trash can was his best option for the time being. With a clatter he grabbed the lid and held it in front of him, unsure of which part of his anatomy would cause the most offence if left uncovered. Eventually, he settled on that disgusting, hanging appendage between his legs.

But before he had time to do anything, a scream made him return his attention to the circus ahead. Despite coming out of an organic vocalizer, the voice had been too familiar. Skywarp had bowed his head and was rubbing his optics, apparently having been victim of some gas attack from one of his objects of pleasure.

The female in question, now free, had stepped back and still held in her hand a small yellow canister.

"Argh, you slut…"

Skywarp didn't have time to finish. Another human, a tall male dressed in black, and considerably bulkier than Skywarp, stepped out of the crowd and grasped him by the arm.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing showing up naked, you asshole?" the male barked.

It was official; things had gone out of control and Thundercracker _had_ to intervene.

With a frustrated huff Thundercracker stepped out of the shadows, holding the trash can lid before him like a shield. He would have preferred to approach silently and make use of the element of surprise, but when the large man landed a punch in Skywarp's abdomen anger took over.

"Over here, you fragger," he shouted as Skywarp fell to his knees, gasping for air.

Looking up, the man took hold of a fistful of the fallen Seeker's hair and pulled his head back roughly. "What the fuck?!" He spat as his dark eyes fell on Thundercraker's naked form. "You some kind of sick fucks, getting your jollies out of flashing your cocks? Faggots, let me show you what happens to assholes like you."

With a sneer that would make Starscream proud, the man tightened his grip on Skywarp's hair and planted swift kick into his groin. The sickening cry that escaped Skywarp's throat was enough to make Thundercracker drop his shield and charge at the burly man, fists clenched and ready to fight.

Many, many things were out of place in that bizarre fight to even consider the battle protocol every Decepticon Seeker had been taught to follow. Thundercracker was human, he had no weapons, no wings and definitely no alloy that would withstand damage.

But Skywarp was in danger, and as much as he was an insufferable afthole, he was Thundercracker's one and only friend, so allowing him to be terminated by some anonymous organic creature was not an option.

The humans became noisier when Thundercracker added his naked self to the scene, but he was far too focused on the male hurting Skywarp to care about anything related to the public exposure of certain parts of his body.

"Do the smart thing and let my friend go," Thundercracker said.

The human smirked and did as told, although he shoved Skywarp violently against the ground. "Whatever you say, fag. Sorry about your boyfriend's balls, I'm afraid he won't be able to please you for a while."

Thundercracker didn't have any idea what the human creature was talking about, but he didn't care. All that mattered was Skywarp's safety and finding a way to get out of there. That and collecting some textile garments that would allow them to continue looking for Starscream unnoticed.

He threw a left hook as soon as he was in striking range, and immediately had to duck out of the way as the man returned the gesture, stepping over the writhing, choking form of Skywarp as he did so. Thundercracker advanced again and caught the human with a quick uppercut to the chin, following up with another hook to the jaw.

"You have no idea who you're messing with," Thundercracker goaded, more in an attempt to hide his fear of fighting in such an inferior body than anything else.

"As if a fag like you could scare me," the man replied, launching himself at Thundercracker and sending them both to the ground.

Punches came thick and fast, and it didn't take long before both combatants were bruised and bleeding. Thundercracker could feel the bitumen road biting angrily at his skin as they continued to fight, angry insults mixing with yelps of pain.

The flashes of light and the yells around him weren't making the fight any easier. Besides pain, he was feeling more and more confused by the minute. He was a Decepticon Seeker, a member of the elite trine; fighting a flesh creature was hardly what anybody could call honorable, especially when so immorally exposed.

A sharp pain in his mouth components, followed by the strong taste of something he assumed it was his own vital fluid, finally managed to make him overcome his internal turmoil, at least for the time being. When he felt something creaking beneath the pressure of his fist and heard the human crying, he realized that he had gained the upper hand in the battle, if such shameful display of combat could be called such.

He stepped back, fists up and ready to finish off his disgusting rival, who was holding the red mess his nose had become. But before Thundercracker could resume his attack, Skywarp seemed to appear out of nowhere and crashed the trash can lid on the human's head, sending him to the ground for good.

And that was as much as Skywarp could do, because he immediately fell to his knees, one hand cupped around the appendage between his legs and the other still holding the trash can lid.

"Frag, TC… it hurts so much…" he said between gritted dental plates.

Thundercracker did his best to ignore the crowd gathering around them and moved toward his wingmate. "Stand up, 'Warp. We have to move."

"Frag, what part of 'it hurts' didn't you understand? This fraggin' flesh creature actually managed to hurt me…"

"We'll take care of the damage later. We have to get out of here now."

The sound of a siren and the red and white flashes in the distance confirmed Thundercracker's fears. His first thought was the worst: Autobots. But a quick second glance told him that some human law enforcements were arriving, not an attractive scenario either.

"Autobots…?" Skywarp said whilst Thundercracker held him by the arm and tried to lift him up.

"No, but it may as well be. Come on, we have to go."

Skywarp staggered to his feet, his human features twisted into a grimace of pain. For a moment it looked as if he was going to say something, but all that escaped his lips was another groan of pain. Thundercracker didn't wait for him to be fully upright before he broke into a run, his hand firmly wrapped around his comrade's wrist.

As the cool evening air stung his wounded skin, Thundercracker cursed his rotten luck. The sick, unbalanced part of him wondered if it would have been better if it was the Autobots behind them; who knew what the human law enforcers would do to them if they were caught.

Then again, Thundercracker wasn't sure if he'd be able to stand the Autobot's sympathies for too long either; Skywarp definitely wouldn't be one to tolerate it for more than a moment.

Starscream, on the other hand, had done it, whether guided by desperation or necessity. Thundercracker had never liked his Air Commander, but, unlike most Decepticons, he knew that Starscream was brave in his own way. He had managed to survive humanity on his own and even broke into the Autobots' circle of trust, whilst his two slagged wingmates hadn't been human for more than a couple of hours and they were already in deep trouble…

He knocked out two more human males before finally reaching the relative safety of an alley, if any place in that slagging city-state could be considered safe. Thundercracker was far too pessimistic – or realistic? – to fool himself into thinking that the darkness would keep them away from their pursuers.

"Stop… I can't run…"

Thundercracker frowned and tightened his grip on Skywarp's wrist. "You can and you will." He had tried, but he couldn't forget that they were stuck in that slag because of Skywarp. It was ALL his fault.

Whether in defiance of Thundercracker's orders or truly out of pain, Skywarp sank to his knees again. "Frag off…" he muttered, pulling his wrist out of Thundercracker's grip and returning his hand to cradle his aching masculinity.

Thundercracker stormed into the darkness, clenching his fists in frustration. It was just so typical of that stupid, slagging idiot to fall when things were at their worst; it was just so typical of him to start the trouble only to expect that someone else get him out of it.

Fingernails bit into soft flesh as Thundercracker's fists tightened further. The sound of his wingmate's pathetic whimpering only served to increase his anger; in pain or not, he was in no mood for melodrama.

"Frag, TC, it really hurts…"

Yeah, and so did the wounds that leaked red vital fluids down his own body, wounds he wouldn't have if he hadn't had to come to the rescue again.

"I think that fraggin' human broke somethin' down here…" Skywarp continued, as always, only caring about himself.

It was very unnatural, but it was the closest part of Skywarp, so Thundercracker reached out and grabbed his wingmate by the black fiber he had instead of a helmet.

"Ooouch… What the frag you think you're doing?"

"Do you see those lights?" Thundercracker said, ignoring Skywarp's complaint and pointing toward the red and blue lights that could be seen on the other side of the street. "They are human law enforcers, and I have very good reasons to believe they are after us."

Skywarp put his hand on Thundercracker's wrist and tried to free his hair, but didn't struggle much when his attention was finally dragged to his wingmate's object of concern.

"Enforcers…? What would they want with us? We didn't do anything."

"Only attacking one of their fellow humans whilst they performed one of their entertainment rituals, not to mention that we exposed ourselves without textile covers, which I'm sure was a violation of their moral codes."

"But…" Despite the pain it caused him, Skywarp turned his head back towards Thundercracker and took a moment to inspect his naked wingmate. "Oh…" he finally said, before letting out a laugh.

"Well I'm glad you find this slagging funny," Thundercracker spat as he let go of Skywarp's hair and shoved him roughly. "Now get up and run, we've wasted enough time here already."

Skywarp remained on his knees. "They're only puny humans, TC, no need to get so worked up."

Thundercracker barely resisted the urge to strike the slagger. "Only a few moments ago you were complaining that those puny humans had broken something. You forget that we're no longer made of metal, you forget that you've turned us both into fragile, puny humans that other puny humans can injure and kill!"

"Let them try. We may have soft-skin armour now, but we're still the best Decepticon Seekers in the army. None of these fleshlings are our equal."

Normally, Thundercracker would have agreed on that, but the wounds on his skin and Skywarp's proved otherwise.

He was about to retort when his attention was called again by the noises that arrived more clearly now. Footsteps, and human vocalizers… The humans were definitely on their tail.

Continuing to press Skywarp about the need to get out of there would have seemed like the normal course of action, but the urgency of the situation required extreme measures, extreme being synonymous of the only way in which Skywarp would listen to him.

"Then wait for their arrival, and see how superior you are when all of them surround you and take you into custody," Thundercracker said, rather nonchalantly. "I'm out of here. Follow me if you can, and if not, I wish I could say it was an honor to fly beside you all these vorns. You're on your own now."

Thundercracker hadn't really meant that, but he knew that Skywarp needed some strings pulled in order to react, and being left behind would always do the trick.

"Frag, wait!" Skywarp yelled when Thundercracker turned his back to him. "Okay, okay… I'll go with you. Why the slag do you have to be such a fragger all the time? There was a time when you were nice, ya know?"

"Curiously, I don't remember a time in which you weren't a glitch-head."

Thundercracker wasn't in good mood, but at least he could hear Skywarp running behind him. Maybe they would manage to outrun the human enforcers…

"You know, TC…?"

"What?" Thundercracker said between gritted teeth. He wondered why he felt that tightness in his chest as he kept sprinting through the streets. Could it be that his human body couldn't stand such simple physical effort?

He heard Skywarp laughing behind him. "Ha, your aft! It's pretty slaggin' funny! Does mine look like that?"

Thundercracker recognized shame in the uncomfortable heat that took over his face.

"No, it looks worse," he grumbled.

"Ha, whatever!" Skywarp responded, planting a playful but not so gentle smack on the aft before him. "I've always been the better looking one."

That was it. Thundercracker had always been the most patient and tolerant member of his trine, but even he had his limits and such a blatant invasion of his personal space pushed him beyond that invisible line. He stopped dead in his tracks, and before Skywarp had the chance to run into the back of him he turned and landed a heavy right hook on his wingmate's chin.

"Ahh! What the frag!" Skywarp cried as he stumbled backwards, cradling his face.

"You think this is a game, don't you," the enraged Thundercracker spat, advancing on his retreating prey and throwing another punch.

"Ow, frag," Skywarp said as he caught a blow and then returned fire. "You have to admit it's pretty funny."

Of all the things he could have said, of all the stupid, thoughtless comments…_that_ was the absolute worst response Skywarp could have given.

Thundercracker didn't say a word, too consumed with anger to vocalize anything but a feral growl. He launched himself at Skywarp and let a volley of punches rain down on the soft, squishy body with such force that his victim had little chance to defend himself.

"Ahhh, get the frag off me!" Skywarp cried with fear and confusion in his voice. "Ugh, TC…frag!"

Red vital fluids began to drip from Skywarp's nose and mouth as he struggled with his best friend, still, Thundercracker continued to let his anger flow.

"You did this to us! You turned us into slagging humans, you stupid frag!"

"You ungrateful frag-face!" Skywarp cried as he uselessly tried to contain his wingmate's punches. "I did it for you! You seriously need to get laid!"

Thundercracker and Skywarp were a rare pair of Decepticons, rare as in the kind of Decepticons who never fixed their problems through physical aggression. That, and the fact that he actually appreciated Skywarp, should have been enough to suffocate Thundercracker's anger, at least to the point of making him stop pounding his wingmate, but Skywarp was only making things worse as the fight progressed, especially when invading very private issues like Thundercracker's interfacing life.

"Mind your own fraggin' business, Skywarp!" he roared, tightening his hands around his wingmate's throat. "Remember that time you tricked me into a pleasure house for this same, stupid reason of getting laid? Well, news flash slagger, this is far worse! You just never learn, don't you?"

Skywarp's grimace of pain should have been enough to make Thundercracker realize that he was going too far, but he was too angry to think about anything but beating his wingmate to junk.

"So you think I'm stupid, uh?" the former black Seeker managed to say. "That's what you've always thought of me… But I have news for you, TC. I ain't stupid. I actually think, and learn. Wanna see some proof? See what I learned today!"

An intense, sharp pain made Thundercracker growl when Skywarp's knee sank between his legs.

It wasn't the intensity of the pain, but the nature, that shocked Thundercracker the most. He had never, ever, felt anything like that before. He had been shot countless times, crashed in jet mode more than once, had had limbs ripped off, but the fire burning the thing that hung between his legs was, by far, the most unique pain he had ever felt, if such was a proper word to qualify it.

"TC… are you okay?" he heard somewhere above him.

He felt the cold pavement beneath him as he rolled to one side and assumed a fetal position, both of his hands cupped around his aching intimate circuitry.

"Slag, I'm sorry, TC… I didn't mean to hit you so hard, but you were actually hurting me, you know? You shouldn't have attacked me like that."

"Frag off," he said, shaking his arm when he felt Skywarp's hand touching his shoulder.

"If it makes you feel better, I think you broke my face. Every slaggin' part of it hurts!"

Thundercracker growled between gritted teeth, wishing that it was only his face that hurt. He was so immersed in his pain that he almost didn't notice the white light that suddenly seemed to illuminate everything around, followed by a screech of tires, a sound that Thundercracker knew well because of the Autobots.

He managed to put one hand on the ground and pushed himself up, certain that they were surrounded by human law enforcers.

"Frag! They found us, TC!" Skywarp cried, mirroring his thoughts.

But no human law enforcer came from the vehicle that stood just some mechano-inches from them, unless said enforcer was weaponless, had its legs uncovered, and was a female.

_To be continued._

* * *

_So there you have it, the first chapter of our newest joint fic. Once again a big thank you to Valong for the amazing images, which not only have helped to inspire this fic, but also some upcoming (and some might say delicious) scenes in our other fics too. _


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Roadside Rendezvous**

There it was again, that little zone in her nape burning like a small hell. It had become a recurrent pain, as familiar as all the arguments she and Rick had had lately. Ada knew that she could never afford to remain silent when something annoyed her, just as Rick couldn't avoid being an asshole. She was starting to see a vicious circle there.

She took her left hand to the buzzing spot on her neck, keeping the right one on the steering wheel. The radio wasn't helping, monotonously reciting the comings and goings of Senator Rick Connor. If they knew the kind of jerk he was… Maybe they did, but not as well as she did.

She stepped on the accelerator, frowning as the memories of the goddamn Senator returned to her mind. She had to be insane to have become engaged to Mr. Corruptus in Extremis, as his political enemies liked to call him. She was aware that she was the envy of the city's aristocratic women, but Ada Stamos was one of the few girls who were not impressed by diamonds.

Not that the diamond gracing the golden band around her ring finger wasn't pretty as it caught the lights of the city streets, but she couldn't help but wonder why she had accepted it in the first place. How many times had she asked herself that question in the last twelve months, and in particular, the last six?

Her hand still on the steering wheel, she began to turn the ring around on her finger with her thumb, a nervous habit which always seemed to unconsciously accompany the pain in her neck. If only Rick would just disappear from view every now and then, as the diamond did as it moved around her finger, then perhaps it wouldn't be so bad. If she didn't have to hear his voice on the radio or television, didn't have to see his face in the papers, on the steps of the senate, in their bed after a long night of drinking and politics...

"_...quite frankly, Senator Welker wouldn't know what to do with a budget surplus if he was drowning in one. But we won't have to worry about that, given Welker's excessive over-spending on foreign aid this year. If only that money had been spent on defence..."_

And there he was again, slick and slimy as he always was with the journalists. Ada let out a frustrated tsk and reached across to the radio, switching it to another station. The horrific dance music that suddenly blared from the speakers was almost as much an insult as Rick's voice; Ada fumbled to find another station.

"_...your accusations are out of order! Let me tell you something about corruption, Mr. Jones. I, Rick Con—" _

Ada couldn't help but glare at the radio as it fell silent. Was it simply impossible to escape that man?!

She looked up at the road again, and immediately slammed on the breaks.

It was instinctive. Her brain still didn't have all of the information regarding what her eyes were seeing when the screeching of the tires became the only thing she could hear. Panic had a funny way of behaving; whether you surrendered to it and made a big mess even bigger, or you actually managed to handle yourself. Ada belonged to the second group, as she veered and managed to avoid hitting the two men in the middle of the street.

_The two naked men, _she thought as her brain processed the scene before her headlights.

The first thing she thought, not without being disturbed, was that they were having sex in the middle of the street. But then she noticed that they seemed to be hurt, especially the one kneeling, who was also the one bleeding the most. The one lying on the ground didn't look so bad, though, but she couldn't see much because he was in fetal position and apparently suffering a lot of pain.

But bloody and pained or otherwise, Ada couldn't suppress the anger that bubbled up inside of her as her initial fear subsided. Did they want to get themselves killed, or worse, some innocent driver like herself?!

Any other day and she would have just driven away, perhaps throwing a few choice words in their direction as her expensive, black Mercedes sped away from them. Unluckily for them, they chose the wrong day to do...whatever they were doing...in the street.

Ada opened the car door and stepped out, the streetlights bathing her in harsh light. The two men looked up at her with wide, frightened eyes akin to a deer trapped in the headlights – or a Senator in the witness stand – the one lying on the ground struggling to rise.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" her anger cried, totally forgetting about her elite education. "I could have killed you!"

The kneeling one – black, messy hair and two dark eyes that seemed to scan her – got to his feet, apparently feeling no shame for his stark nudity.

He didn't get far, though, as his lover or whoever it was grabbed him by the leg. That gesture alone seemed enough to contain him.

"We…" the fallen one said with deep, beautiful voice. "We were attacked… robbed."

"I can tell," Ada said. She discarded her first thought about those two being lovers when she noticed their resemblance. They had to be brothers. "Are you guys okay?"

That was one stupid question. They looked hurt and she feared that they had been more than just robbed. Fortunately, due to Rick's job, she knew where rape victims could receive immediate assistance.

The elder one, now on his knees and with one hand covering his crotch, seemed to share the awkward feeling of her question. "Um, we…"

Ada shook her head. "Sorry, that was a dumb thing to ask," she said, turning her head aside in an attempt to give them some privacy – although the younger guy didn't seem to have any problem with his lack of clothes, as he remained standing nude and proud. "I can take you somewhere where you can get help."

"Did you hear that, TC? Maybe we can get back to our real bo—"

A punch silenced him, or at least that was what Ada could tell from the sound. She had it clear now that the elder one called the shots.

"That...ahh...that won't be necessary," he said with his deep voice.

"But TC—"

The younger man was once again cut off with what sounded like another punch. Ada couldn't help but cringe at that – why was it that men always resorted to violence these days? Still, there was no denying the obvious trouble these two were in, nor could she ignore the uncertainty she had heard in the older guy's voice.

"Ow, you slagger!"

Ada turned her head slightly and stole a glance at the bloodied pair, just in time to see the younger one cuff his companion upside the head.

She was no expert in the matter, but on closer inspection those two definitely didn't look like rape victims – she doubted they would be hitting one another like that for a start. That took some weight off her shoulders, but still she had gotten into a serious mess.

"I'll call the police," she said, reaching out to the open door of her car. "If you were robbed, they should know about it. You could also use a visit to the hospital—"

She didn't know in which moment the older one – TC – had gotten up. She only knew that there was a hand on the door of her Mercedes, and that she had the bluest eyes she had ever seen looking straight at her face.

"That won't be necessary," he said, once again surprising her with those perfect harmonics.

"B-but you… were robbed…" she stammered, his proximity making her nervous. _Don't look down, don't look down…_

"We don't want any trouble, okay," he said, those blue eyes staring so intently at her that Ada felt he might burn her. "Just...just get back in your car and drive away."

And then suddenly, the younger one was there beside him, grabbing his arm, a slight look of...was that lust...in his strangely violet eyes.

"TC, maybe she can help us," he said, those eyes slowly beginning to roam. "We don't know where we are and we have nothing to help us...and I don't know about you but I hurt like slag and could really use some pain killers, you know?"

The sound of her own heartbeat returned to her ears as her earlier fear resurfaced again; there was nothing in his words but the way in which the young man was closing in on her – not to mention looking at her – made her feel a little threatened. The nudity didn't help either.

There was something very odd about them. Aside from the obvious, the way they talked just didn't sound right.

Fear resurfaced when she found herself surrounded by the strange couple. She had been very quick to suspect that they may have suffered sexual abuse, but she had been terribly slow to realize that she could be the one in danger.

She had never been so relieved to hear police sirens. Her companions, however, didn't seem to share her thoughts.

"Frag!" the younger one said. "Those law enforcers again!"

Okay, now her second suspicion was taking shape. The police looking for two bloodied, nude young men sounded pretty logical.

"I…" she said, clearing her throat. "I didn't see you guys, okay? I never stopped my car, and I definitely have no idea of what you are up to." She tried to close the door but TC's firm grip didn't allow her to move it an inch. "Please…" she said when fear became a clear reality.

"We are not going to hurt you." His voice was so calm and deep that it sounded like truth. Still…

"Besides, they're the ones who robbed us!" the younger one said behind her. "Those police guys!"

Ada raised a suspicious eyebrow. Police assaulting people was not such a strange thing those days, but that modus operandi just didn't sound right.

"I don't want any trouble," she tried to sound reassuring, especially to herself. "Not with you, not with the police…" She cast a hopeful look at her purse inside the car. "Would five hundred dollars be enough to send you guys on your way? I can also lend you something to wear. I have a blanket in my trunk…"

TC grabbed her by the arm, but his severe eyes were looking to the distance. "That's a generous offer, but I'm afraid you're confusing us with simple thieves."

"Yeah, we're Elite Seek—" the younger one said, only to receive an elbow right in the middle of his face. "Frag, TC! Since when did you become so violent? Now you finished breaking my—"

"A ride to our destination is something that we would appreciate instead," TC continued as if he hadn't just hit his brother. "What he said is true. The law enforcers… the police assaulted us. I don't have time to explain now, but we would be very thankful if you'd take us out of harm's way."

Ada hesitated. She didn't buy those weird nude guys' act at all, but the proximity of red and blue lights was equally disturbing. She could only imagine how much the 'Senator Connor's fiancée caught with two naked male prostitutes' headline would affect Rick's career.

Her eyes moved to the younger of the two men, now holding his nose as blood snaked through his fingers and what could only be construed as the strangest curse words she'd ever heard spilled from his lips. That in itself should have been enough to convince her that the headlines were the safer option, but as she looked up into the blue eyes of TC, she realised that he wasn't really giving her an option.

"Fine," Ada said as she stepped back and gestured for TC to get into the car, desperately hoping that his definition of 'thankful' didn't include the violence he was so obviously fond of. Certainly, the alternate headline 'Senator Connor's fiancée brutally raped and murdered' would have a more 'positive' impact on Rick – it was always hard for the people to hate someone that had suffered a tragic loss – but for her, it was the worst possible outcome.

"Wait a minute," Ada said with frustration, stopping the younger man as he attempted to climb into the car. "I don't need you bleeding all over my car."

She reached into the back seat and pulled out the white shirt Rick had left in there earlier that day after demanding that she bring him a fresh change of clothes and 'that blue tie the cameras love'.

"Use this," she commanded, shoving the garment into his hands before ushering him into the car.

She took her place in the driver's seat under the scrutinizing look of TC. He looked all around before sitting beside her. She noticed that he was taller than his brother, and definitely taller than Rick. He had also the tightest abs she had ever seen, and his ass…

She shook her head, reminding herself to keep her gaze up. _What are you doing? You're Senator Rick's Connor wife to be. You can't think about the ass of one of the two naked guys in your car!_

"Please, cover yourself with this," she said, laboriously taking off her black two thousand dollar coat and extending it to her right.

TC didn't say anything, but he accepted the garment. Now that decency had been more or less restored, she felt a little less nervous.

"So, you're TC, right? And that would be short for…?"

He attempted to close the coat around himself before responding. "Just TC. My friends call me that."

He was as curt and serious as Ada's first impression of him had been. _As curt and serious as a nude guy can be, _she thought.

"And you are…" she said, looking to the reflection of TC's brother in the rear mirror.

"Me?" the black haired young man said, smiling with perfect teeth. "Oh, I'm Asshole."

She frowned and came close to hitting her back tire on a corner. Was that jerk teasing her?

"You don't say… So that's your name?" she decided to play the game.

"That's what that human called me twice—"

"Is it so important that you know our denominations?" TC interrupted, piercing her with that deep, ocean-blue gaze of his. "I don't remember you telling us your name either."

Ada's fingers tightened around the steering wheel as she cast a look in TC's direction before returning her attention to the road again. She felt like a fool for getting herself into such a dangerous position, and the thought of revealing her identity didn't make her feel any better. It was no secret that there were a lot of people out there who would be more than happy to take advantage of her simply to get at Rick, be it via blackmail or otherwise.

Still, she could feel those blue eyes on her, waiting for an answer, and couldn't help but feel her fear rising again. What if she refused, would TC become violent again?

"It's Ada," she finally responded, cursing herself as she did so.

"Ada," she heard him saying her name, as if studying it. "As you already know, I like to be called TC, and my brother's name is Jon. I apologize for the oddity of our first encounter, but I tell the truth when I say that meeting you has been very helpful for us."

_No shit. _"Uh-huh… So where are we going?"

"Does your vehicle fly? Is it water resistant?" violet eyes asked from the back seat.

Okay, so he was a joker, big deal. "No, that would be my other car. You said that you would appreciate it if I took you to your destination. Where would that be?"

"Erm, do you happen to know Sean… what the slag was his other name, TC? Latte?"

A yellow convertible drove beside them, the young women inside starting to yell and whistle when they noticed that the two guys inside were wearing very few clothes. Ada stepped the accelerator and lost them.

"I live ten minutes from here," she said after a silence, enough for her to realize that those guys would make her drive randomly through the entire city, thus increasing the chances of getting caught and becoming the star of that infamous first page of the morning paper. "Since I take it you are not interested in going to a hospital, perhaps I could take you home, help you to clean up your wounds and lend you some clothes. Then you could be on your way."

"Slag yes," Jon replied for TC, once again using his strange expression. "All this red stuff is starting to get sticky and uncomfortable, ya know. And my head hurts…like, bad."

From the corner of her eye, Ada saw TC glance back at his brother. She too looked back, using her rear view mirror, and couldn't help but feel a little disturbed at the site of Jon scrutinizing the bloodied shirt he'd pulled away from his bruised nose. There was a strange look in his deep, violet eyes, as if he had never seen that much blood before.

"Yes," TC finally said, not seeming to show any concern for his brother's well being. "That would be good."

Ada sighed, trying to exile the thought – more like a certainty – that it was a very stupid idea to take them to her home, not only because of her own safety but because of the Rick factor. No matter what she did now, she had gotten into big trouble.

It was going to be a long night. Definitely.

_To be continued._

* * *

_Sorry that we took some time to update this story, but you know the story of our lives: our schedules are a mess and sometimes it gets really hard to catch each other on line and work on our joint stories - yeah, we write our chapters during our weekend chats._

_We hope you enjoyed this second chapter written by our hormones. Now, there are some things we would like to point out. The 'Corruptus in Extremis' reference was taken from The Simpsons. Major Diamond Quimby, anyone? ;o) We both love that show, so it would be needless to say that we couldn't resist using that._

_If you are also reading 'Fleshling', the mother of this story, you must have noticed that we like to use names and last names of actors that gave their voices to the G1 Transformers. We are using the name Frank in 'Fleshling', and now we borrowed the last name Welker for a little bit - partly because he also voiced Ratbat, who was a senator in some continuities. By the way, Mr. Frank Welker, I want to take the opportunity to say that we are completely in love with you. Would you marry us?_

_And 'Mr Jones' comes from Mr Buster Jones, who voiced Blaster...who being a key voice on the airwaves of Cybertron probably interviewed a few senators in his time._

_As for Thundercracker naming Skywarp 'Jon', that was also a reference to a series we both adore, 'Game of Thrones', although we prefer the books over the TV series. In the IDW comics, TC became a huge fan of human television, so we thought it would be kind of natural that he would be aware of GoT and pick one of the names there for Skywarp, as much as Jon Snow has nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with our dear black Seeker. _

_Also, when Skywarp said the name 'Sean Latte' he was talking of Sean Latta, which is the name Starscream is using during his human experience._

_Okay, we're done with author notes that most likely were useless, but still we wanted to point them out. We are already working on the third chapter of this story, so it will be up really soon. Many thanks for your support and don't forget to leave a comment before leaving._


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